Virgin Orbit, spin-off to launch Virgin Galactic satellites by Sir Richard Branson, preparing to become public, announcing today, which will combine with SPAC to host on Nasdaq.
When to wait for an IPO?
The company merges with special purpose acquisition company NextGen Acquisition Corp. II. It trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol $NGCA before the expected closing of the deal towards the end of the year., when the shares will be converted into $VORB
- "I, certainly, would not invest a billion dollars, if I wasn't extremely sure, and we had a lot of experience with SPAC, and I hope, that we will have the same experience with Virgin Orbit.", – Branson said in an interview with CNBC
SPAC, led by George Mattson, who previously led the global industrial group Goldman Sachs, and former PerkinElmer Chairman and CEO Gregory Samme, evaluates Virgin Orbit in $3,7 billion
What are the prospects?
Virgin owns businesses around the worldVirgin owns businesses around the world
Branson's space tourism subsidiary Virgin Galactic, the company is privately owned by Branson's multinational conglomerate Virgin Group with a minority stake in abu Dhabi's Mubadala national welfare fund., which to date have invested in Virgin Orbit about $1 billion.
The company uses a modified Boeing aircraft 747 to launch their missiles, method, known as an air launch.
Instead of, to launch missiles from the ground, as competitors, such as Rocket Lab or Astra, the company's planes raise their LauncherOne missiles to a height of about 45 000 feet and drop them just before starting the engine and accelerating into space - method, which the company advertises as more flexible, than a ground system.
LauncherOne is designed to deliver small satellites weighing up to 500 Kilograms. Virgin Orbit completed its first successful launch in January, and the second in June.
- Virgin Orbit aims to become ebitda-earnings to 2024 year. The company declares, that she has about $300 million active contracts, and also $2,3 billion – "identified sales opportunities, which are currently being implemented". CEO Dan Hart told CNBC, that the company's core rocket business "will grow to about 18 launches in 2023 year".
The company expects, that this year's revenue will be about $15 million, and the EBITDA loss will be $156 million. But Virgin Orbit aims to rapidly increase that revenue in the coming years., forecasting revenue in the amount of $2,1 billion k 2026 year.
Virgin Orbit joins the trend, when space companies go public through SPAC deals, and Virgin Galactic will be the first of the latest generation in 2019 year.
Astra rocket developer, AST company & Science, specializing in satellite broadband, Spire Global satellite data service and specialist on space supplies Momentus began trading, Expected, that Rocket Lab will debut on Wednesday, and BlackSky, Redwire, Satellogic and Planet, As expected, will follow in the coming months.
